North Dakota State University Extension Service - Burke County
Tips and Tricks For Your PC
Computer Tips
Keep your computer operating at its best by using a good antivirus program
like Norton, McAfee, or AVG. I use Free AVG which I downloaded at Cnet.com.
It does not have any annual fees and does not seem to load up my system like
Norton. It doesn’t have quite as many features like built in popup blockers
or the ability to create restore points like Norton but Internet Explorer
and Windows XP have those features.
Along with a good antivirus, antispyware programs like Ad-Aware and Spybot
S&D are also a good idea. Spyware can infect your computer by visiting
websites which automatically download and install it without your knowing.
Many free software programs also install spyware when the free program is
installed. Most of these spyware programs don’t really do much other than
slow your computer down and give you a few more popups but some can change
your homepage, change your desktop wallpaper and make your computer
unusable. Some of the worst spyware comes from companies which sell
antispyware programs. When you open a website affiliated with one of them
you get a popup telling you that your computer is infected. Clicking on the
“Close” button of the popup actually downloads and installs the spyware
which then changes your desktop wallpaper to a message saying your computer
is infected. It then gives you another popup telling you to purchase,
download and install antispyware to remove the infection (which it
created!). It provides you with links to several different programs, all
created by the company which created the software but of course they don’t
tell you that! Always use the “x” to close popups. If you are really
suspicious of one you might even want to use the task manager to close it.
Press “ctrl”, “alt”, and “delete” at the same time. The task manager window
will open. You can highlight running programs (including popups) and then
click on “end task”.
Internet Surfing History
Are you looking for something on the internet and you recall seeing a
reference to it on a site which you
were on a few days ago but didn’t save it to your favorites? All is not
lost! There should be a “history” button on your Internet Explorer tool bar.
Clicking on the button will open a window on the left side which allows you
to navigate back to sites which you were on yesterday, earlier this week or
even during the past couple of weeks. If you don’t see a “history” button,
click on “view”, then go to “explorer bar”, then click on “history”.
Alternately you can just press the “ctrl” and “h” keys at the same time.
Computer Backups
Backing up the data on your computer doesn’t have to be complicated. Tape
backups, flash drives, removable hard drives, cd-r’s or online backups are
all possible methods. The best method for you may depend on what you need to
backup and the total storage space. Perhaps the toughest part of backing up
your computer (besides remembering to do it!) is just deciding what to
backup. Some people do complete hard drive backups but that is probably not
necessary for a daily backup. In most cases it is probably not necessary at
all. If you have the original discs for all you software programs including
your computer operating system or have a restore disc that came with your
computer you should not have to do frequent complete hardrive backup. What
you need are your data backups: email, contacts, letters, financial data
files, photographs, and music. Do you need daily backups of even all that?
In most cases periodic complete backups in addition to immediate backups of
any important changes (financial records), or backups of new data (photos,
music, etc.) will be plenty. For most people a cdr, cdrw, or a usb flash
drive will provide adequate space for financial records and address books.
Cds and dvds are fine for some people for photos and music but if you have
lots of large resolution photos and high quality wav or mp3 files you may
want to consider a portable hard drive. Whatever method you choose, the
important part is: Just Do It!
Anti-Spyware Programs
Spyware has gotten to be a huge problem for internet users. I see more
problems related to spyware than I do viruses. That doesn’t mean that
viruses aren’t a problem anymore, just that more people are using antivirus
software and keeping it updated. Most internet service providers have good
virus filtering programs for their customers e-mail accounts as well.
Spyware infections usually occur when downloading free programs from the
internet or sometimes the spyware download starts just by visiting an
internet site with an automatic download. Some spyware doesn’t do much more
than slow your computer down by running in the background. Other spyware can
interfere with the operation of certain programs or change your desktop
images and screen savers. One of the worst ones I’ve seen changed my desktop
image to a message telling me that my computer is infected with spyware. It
also changed my internet homepage to a page where I could purchase an
anti-spyware program! This particular spyware was created by the company
selling the anti-spyware program for the sole purpose of infecting your
computer, so you would have to buy their program!
I usually use Spybot and Ad-Aware anti-spyware programs. It seems that each
will detect and fix spyware that the other misses. Microsoft now has a free
program called “Defender” which can be downloaded at no cost. Some reviews I
have read rate it as very good, other reviewers have been less than
enthusiastic about it. I have not tried it yet.
If your computer seems to be running slower than it used to try running one
or more of these anti-spyware programs. Most of the “very slow” computers I
have worked on have been infected.
Toothpaste For CD’s?
Do you have CD’s which have become unreadable? One of the websites where I
have found unusual but useful computer tips suggests trying toothpaste. I
have not tried it myself but the website author, whom I have found to be
reliable, states that he has had some success with it.
CD’s get scratched and 
oily
from fingerprints no matter how careful you are. I’ve tried commercial CD
cleaners with marginal success. Before trying other methods, first clean the
disc with warm, soapy water to remove any oils and loose dirt. Gently dry it
with a lint free towel and give it a try. That may be all you need to do. If
not, get out the Crest! (Or any paste type toothpaste, not a gel type).
Gently rub the toothpaste from the center out, not round and round. Wash and
dry the disc again and give it a try.
Some experts suggest using a car polish or silver polish. The idea is to
buff out the small scratches and minute amounts of the abrasive will remain
on the CD to help fill and smooth the larger scratches. If your CD becomes
readable you should immediately make a backup copy. Do not continue to use
the original because there is a possibility of the filler gumming up your
drive.
This may not always work, but when the alternative is to throw out the disc
it’s worth a try. Wipeout! and Discwasher are two commercial products you
could try if you don’t have toothpaste.
Use Your Printer
I know a few people who seldom use their inkjet printers or print black and
white only because they figure ink is too expensive to waste. It may be true
that ink is expensive but if you don’t use the printer regularly (both black
and color) your cartridges can dry out and quit working even though they may
be full of ink. How often is often enough to prevent drying out or plugging
ink jets? I’ve seen lot’s of opinions but no hard and fast rules. I am sure
you won’t have a problem if you use both the color and black cartridges at
least once a week. You are unlikely to have a problem if you use them at
least once every two weeks. If it gets to be once a month between uses you
may have a problem once a year. If you don’t use an ink cartridge for a
couple of months or more your chances of a dried out or plugged cartridge go
up very rapidly.
If you are getting poor color out of a full cartridge, try going into the
program for your printer and see if it has a maintenance tab and a head or
jet cleaning option. If you are getting faded out colors or gray instead of
black due to low ink flow cleaning might
help.
Is Digital Zoom Useful?
If you study the advertisements of the digital camera manufacturers, you
will see them all promoting the level of digital zoom they have. However, if
you read the camera magazines or read online articles about digital zoom,
you will see it proclaimed as “worse than useless”. So, what is the truth?
Should you ignore the level of digital zoom when comparing cameras? Should
you use it or avoid it?
Using the digital zoom on any digital camera, results in a loss of
resolution and quality. I seldom use it myself, preferring to edit and crop
my photos on the computer where it is easier to judge the balance the
quality loss verses the size of the objects in the photo. If you simply take
your memory stick or other camera memory card to Walmart for printing, I
think you may want to use the digital zoom for some shots. Especially if you
have a high resolution camera. If you have an old 1.3 megapixel camera with
a 3x optical zoom, even your 
4x6
prints may be really grainy or pixilated. If you are using a 7.0 megapixel
camera, a 3x optical zoom is going to look very good unless you are having
the photo blown up to a large size. In general, I would recommend taking the
same shot both with and without the digital zoom if possible when you do not
normally edit and print your own photos. That gives you the option of
editing or having someone else edit the photo and having the higher quality,
non-zoomed shot, to work with.
If you are considering a new camera, don’t pay much attention to the level
of digital zoom. Higher megapixel resolution and optical zoom will give you
much better photos.
Dan Folske
Extension Agent/Burke County
Soil Conservation Technology Specialist
PO Box 280
Bowbells, North Dakota 58721
dan.folske@ndsu.edu
701-377-2927